


You Are Doing Good

by lionheart8



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Gen, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-09
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-12 17:21:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12964503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lionheart8/pseuds/lionheart8
Summary: After the gate was closed and everyone went back to their normal lives Steve Harrington was still the designated babysitter. Basically it's a story about how much Steve cares about the kids and his brotherly relationship with Dustin while Steve is trying to figure out his future.





	You Are Doing Good

**Author's Note:**

> Hello,  
> This is my first fan-fiction here. Sorry for any mistakes in language beforehand. I really enjoyed Steve's "babysitter" storyline this season, especially his bonding with Dustin and I'm really excited for how his storyline will develop next season. Meanwhile you can enjoy my take on the developments following the second season.

It had been a couple of months since the world almost ended again. Everybody was trying to go back to their normal lives or at least trying to get used to their new normal. After everything that went down last year all of them were sure this was a movie type, once in a lifetime apocalypse thing. Now that the same shit show went down again they were sure that at some point they will have to deal with a new creature the kids will name after some character in D&D. That’s why Steve kept his nail bat in the trunk of his car now and that’s why he never let any of the kids bike home at dark. The kids wasn’t pleased with this saying they weren’t in kindergarten. Dustin would say:

 

“My mom lets me bike so why should I listen to you?”

Steve would give him a stern look meaning don’t judge my decisions.

“Your mom doesn’t know that you were there when the world was fucking ending. TWICE.”

Dustin would give him a know-it-all look.

“Yeah well it didn’t.”

To this Steve would almost say that that world is ending phase can and will happen again and maybe worse than the last time. Then he would stop himself because he didn’t want to make the kid worry even though he knows Dustin might be braver than him.

“Remember I’m the reason you shit heads can stay so late at the arcade. If I wasn’t picking you dipshits up you would be home two hours early.”

 

Dustin was actually grateful for Steve. He knew that Steve could have just left these guys after the world was saved and all but he stuck around. Unlike so many people, unlike his dad, he was guessing unlike Steve’s dad. Also he felt like Steve needed the kids too. After his breakup with Nancy he was basically left with nobody. Sure Steve had some civilized and acquaintance-wise relationship with both Nancy and Jonathan but that wasn’t really a connection. So Dustin wouldn’t drag the subject.

 

“Okay fine. But just so you know, you can be a dick sometimes.”

Steve would say fake angry:

“Hey! Respect your elders. Don’t call them a dick because they are right.”

 

So this was Steve’s life now. With no reputation good or bad, with no friends, with an away family and possibly with no future. Sure he was studying hard and now that the only thing consuming his time was the little shits, he was putting in so much effort. But he wasn’t really sure what he wanted to do in college. At first he thought about studying business so that eventually he could work for his father even better with a degree. Than he thought about studying something like engineering so that he would build things that would stand to creatures from other dimensions. This plan was crushed when his advisor told him his grades weren’t good enough. There was even a brief moment where he considered teaching because of how everyone pointed out how good he was with kids. Eventually that plan was ruled out too and now he had absolutely no idea what to do of his future. 

Well, there was one other idea which Steve found totally crazy. Lucas was the one who pitched it to him. One day when Steve took Dustin, Lucas and Max to have some burgers and fries the kids decided to get a little too nosey in his future. They started to question him about what he would he do in a weird parenty way. When they realized Steve had zero plans for future they started to shout different jobs at him. 

 

“You can totally be a surf instructor. You have the hair for it Harrington.” said Max jokingly. She was always looking for a way to make fun of his hair.

“Of course he can be. He can do everything he wants.” said Dustin. The kid really had too much faith in him. 

Then Lucas had to go all serious and said: “You can work for the sheriff.”

The three heads turned to him. The one person who was always rightfully skeptical was sincerely suggesting a rather hard job to him. Then other three heads turned to Steve waiting for his reaction. Steve tried to laugh it off. 

“Yeah me as a cop, that would make one hell of a comic that you nerds would enjoy.”

The kids didn’t laugh which meant that they were into this idea which meant it was either so stupid or so good. 

“I’m serious. You were pretty good with that bat imagine what you can with a gun. And you can learn how to kick a door and teach to us too.” said Lucas laughing through at the end. 

“Harrington just think about it.” said Max and he listened to her. He thought about this deeply. He still thought it was a crazy idea but a crazy idea that somehow made sense.

 

Before Nancy all Steve wanted was to get out of this town, after Nancy he was willing to stay here to look over her and now he was more than willing to stay here to look after the kids. Somehow three out of six of them managed to have family dramas. 

The Wheeler parents weren’t really concerned about their whereabouts and sure Mike had Nancy but another pair of eyes wouldn’t hurt. 

Max’s family issues couldn’t be reduced to some kind of drama. Steve would get worried sick every time he dropped Max at home after a day hanging with the kids. He usually dropped her last not because her house was away, if anything Byers house was the furthest but because he wanted to keep her away from that house. Her brother was an ass who could've killed Steve if it wasn’t for Max and her stepfather was a dick who abused his children. Steve knew how tough Max was and after that threat with the bat Billy was staying away from her but he was still worried. He would fight with Billy again if it came to that. 

Then there was Dustin. His mother was the sweetest. Steve had been to their house multiple times sometimes for dinner sometimes just to hang out. But his family was missing someone, his dad had left when Dustin was five leaving Mrs.Henderson to raise Dustin alone. Dustin never told this to Steve. He heard bits and pieces from the kids until one day Mrs.Byers told him the whole story. She knew it all because the two mothers somehow bonded over their husbands’ leave. Even though his parents didn’t left him they were usually away for work so he understood Dustin up to some degree. After hearing the story he felt more responsible to the kid. So he promised himself that he would always be there for him to guide him through from girl stuff to demogorgon stuff. 

He also had to have one eye on Lucas because that racist ass Billy could attack him again, one eye on Will (he had Jonathan but again another pair of eyes couldn’t hurt) because the other kids were always picking up on him and one eye on Jane not because she needed it but because he wanted to make sure she was safe too.

On top of the real life bad events they had another dimension of batshit things to worry about.

Still he really had no idea how he assigned himself to the care of these six kids but he did. So maybe becoming a cop and sticking around in Hawkins wasn’t that bad of an idea. 

 

Some time passed and he even grew closer with the kids. Babysitter Steve was ten times, thousand times better than King Steve. Somehow the little dickheads managed to be better friends to him than Tommy or Carol ever was. Still it was though being all alone in the school but it gave him time to think about this whole working for the sheriff plan. The weird thing was he was warming up to it and one day he made his decision. 

 

It was another day of dealing with kid stuff or more like pre-teen stuff and for Dustin it was dealing with young-adult shit. The other kids were busy with normal things like homework, family times or household chores. So it was only Dustin and Steve hanging out that day. They had some burgers and fries and were eating it up in Steve car. Steve pointing his finger at Dustin:

“Hey, dickhead! No spilling anything. If I see so much as a drop in my car you will clean it.”

Dustin said taking a sip from his soda:

“What am I, five? I know how to eat.”

“Yeah says the kid who messed up my couch just last week.”

Dustin said his mouth full of fries:

“That was all Lucas.”

Steve nodded sarcastically:

“Yeah, yeah.”

They ate in silence for a few minutes and Dustin was thinking how could he ask Steve if he decided on whether he would be working for the sheriff or not. He desperately wanted Steve to stick around. Dustin thought once Steve left the small town he wouldn’t return again. He would be right not to return, a guy like Steve belonged in the big city. Also it was not like Dustin could call Steve all the time and even if they talked on the phone, he wouldn’t be able to see the new hairstyles of Steve through it. He finally mustered up his courage and said:

“Can I ask you something?”

Steve looked at him suspiciously:

“Why the sudden kindness buddy?”

“I’m just trying to respect my elder like you said.”

Steve knew this wasn’t a normal question about girls, school, being a teenager or even the demo-dogs. Some big question was coming so he turned in his seat to face Dustin:

“Okay. Listening.”

“Uhmm. Are-you-going-to-work-for-the-sherriff?” said Dustin so quickly that all of the words merged together but Steve caught up the word sheriff and understood the topic of the question.

“Haven’t decided yet. Why?”

The way Steve said why brought Dustin back to the day he first asked for Steve’s help. It was almost the same tone.

“No reason, just curious.”

“Okay.”

They ate in silence again for a few minutes until Steve talked because he felt like he needed to reassure the kid.

“You know that it does not matter if I stay or go right? I will still be awesome and you guys still will be dickheads.”

Dustin smiled weakly:

“Yeah, yeah I know but you messed up the order I will be awesome and you will be the dickhead.”

Steve said laughing:

“Aaand we are back to the regular Dustin. At this rate I will have to start a swear jar.”

Steve waited Dustin to shoot back but there was another silence. This time it was Dustin to break it. He did not know why but he just started to talk.

“If you want to you can go. You should live in a big city like New York anyways.”

Steve realized that given the delicacy of the subject he should stop playing it as a joke.

“Hawkins isn’t that bad kiddo.” 

“Steve I don’t think there are other upside-downs so here is the worst, like the team that is losing in a basketball game.” 

Steve appreciated the poor reference the kid tried to make.

“My point exactly. I don’t think any other group of nerds, misfits, kids need me to drive them around town.”

Steve waited Dustin to object and say “We don’t need driving you do that.” but he didn’t say anything. So Steve continued:

“When Nancy and Jonathan leave for college, even if they will be far away, Nancy will still be Mike’s big sister and Jonathan will still be Will’s big brother.”

Dustin nodded then started a kind of stream of consciousness: 

“Unless one of them is erased out of the family tree but still they will be related through blood-

“Dustin, I wasn’t finished.”

Dustin said picking up his soda:

“Fine, continue.”

Steve took a deep breath:

“Just like even if I go somewhere far away I would still be Steve to you.”

 

Steve did not know what to call himself. Friend? Sure they were friends up to a point but friends don’t give brotherly advice. Brother? Sure he gave brotherly advice but he wasn’t meeting all the necessities of being a brother. So just “Steve” seemed appropriate.

In his mind Dustin changed the words Steve to “brother”. He would never tell that to Steve but he was so happy that he finally got a cool brother like Will. Sure Dustin loved his mother and knew how good she was in raising him but he was always secretly jealous of Will for having Jonathan after their father had left. So he replied in a rather cheesy way but meaning it fully:

 

“And I will always be Dustin.”

Steve patted Dustin’s head smiling:

“Yeah I know buddy.”

 

The other day Steve drove to the station and asked Hopper what he need to do to work there. Hopper was quite surprised. The spoiled Harrington kid who carried his head up high wanted to work with the sheriff; the world really turned upside-down he taught. Guess two days fighting with inter-dimensional monsters changed the teen. 

“Why do you want this job Harrington?”

Steve ran his head through his hair:

“It wouldn’t be bad to stick around, to look after the little rascals.”

Knowing his parents and how he was brought up Hopper appreciated the kid for caring so much.

“You are doing good with the kids Harrington, real good. Come back tomorrow we’ll talk with details.”

Steve left the station smiling finally feeling like he is a good person after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. I will appreciate it if you left a comment (good or bad really). As you can see I'm on the bandwagon of Steve working with Hooper headcanon. I hope the Duffer Brothers will take on a road like that. I tried to make the characters as close as I can to the show. I wished I know some things about D&D to include it in the kid's talking. I hope you enjoyed it. Xx


End file.
